bunnyshop shopping fashion blog

Sundance Special: "The September Issue" Review

We thought, given the subject matter, that it would be reasonable to break into our normal coverage for our first-ever Sundance review on this site: "The September Issue," or, as we suggested to our Sundance roommate when we left the screening room, "The Devil Bares Nada." (Ba-dum-dum!) It is the story of the making of Vogue's titular September 2007 issue (the biggest-ever issue of a single-month consumer magazine, etc etc) and how Anna Wintour actually is mean in real life like she was in the Anne Hathaway movie.

Meaner: She does, in fact, actually tell one person (the innocent cameraman, drafted into service during a shoot) he's too fat and that he should go to the gym. Also, Sienna Miller's hair is "lackluster" and her toothy smile not up to Vogue standards. ("And I think these are fillings?") AW basically comes across as a repressed control freak whose overachieving family (including lawyer-to-be daughter Bee) thinks she's useless. The entire process would be heartbreaking if it weren't so often ridiculous, like when ALT shows up to play tennis with Louis Vuitton luggage in tow, or when stylist\model\editor Grace Coddington (easily the film's most likable presence) makes her salad the object of her displaced rage after some of her images are cut, murdering leafy greens with a heretofore-unseen lettuce-murdering vigor.

It's a great documentary, in sense that you're constantly like, How did they get that access? We have no idea why Wintour would be up for this, and the timing seems particularly bad, given the rumors that she'll soon be pushed out for Carine or sent to France on an ambassadorship. It's a little TMI, like when Wintour shows some total Roger Federer mentionitis. ("Did you see Roger won?") The access is amazing: Karl Lagerfeld, Mario Testino, Oscar de la Renta, Stefano Pilati, Vera Wang, Jean Paul Gaultier, and Thakoon all make appearances.

We didn't leave the screening understanding why AW went through all the hassle of being an editor, beyond her story about her father telling her to declare her interest in being the editor of Vogue when faced with filling out a questionnaire about her future. But for anyone who loves looking at pretty things, and is curious about the way the magazine comes together—and NB we work at a magazine, and we're still curious about it—we really wouldn't miss it.

Reader Mail: The Film Moment

The contest continues! We actually had an editor fire us once—from, by the way, an unpaid job—for opening a story with the verb "continues." That was awesome.

Er, anyhoo: The Jocasi contest does, indeed, continue, with this question. Again, the rules: the post with the most comments wins the prize. Easy peasy.

This one is from M.:

What is your favorite fashion moment from film history?

We had to think about this quite a bit, but our favorite recent fashion moment was actually Leighton Meester wearing a Jennifer Behr headband for TK. She really is, in our opinion, the best dressed character in filmed entertainment at the moment, and when we saw that headband we were just like: How does something so beautiful exist without us knowing about it previously? Historically, we usually go with our inevitable Audrey Hepburn answer—probably Sabrina—but lately we would recommend that movie Priceless for no other reason than the dresses Audrey Tautou wear are unbelievably excellent.
Also, bizarrely, we have perhaps never coveted any accessory so much as we did Scarlett Johansson's Mulberry bag in the otherwise not particularly notable Match Point.
Who else has an opinion? Audrey H. in Roman Holiday? Audrey H. in Breakfast at Tiffany's? Someone with a name other than Audrey?

The Most Fashionable Film Winner!

So this was an incredibly close contest—5 to 4 to 3, if we can trust the counting-up we just did on our fingers—but the winner is: Sabrina! It earned our vote as well. This is actually far from the most fashionable moment, but we love it. We totally want to go to this egg-cracking school, by the way.

The Most Fashionable Film Contest!

We are just wondering if you have seen our extensive array of YouTube clips! and done your American duty and voted!

No more exclamation points but: our Most Fashionable Film contest requires a winner. Vote now! (Last one.)

The Most Fashionable Film Contest!

Can we just say, whenever we think Hilary Clinton is going to lose, we want to cry a little bit, and whenever we think Barack Obama is going to lose, we want to cry a little bit. Why can we just not meld them into one experienced, change-loving candidate? And how bizarre is it, the momentum-altering thing Tina Fey did? We find ourselves talking about Saturday Night Live quite a bit these days.

Anyhoo, speaking of voting! We've completely come apart on our contest for the most fashionable film. Please, to be voting for your favorite. We reveal that we led with our choice.

1. Sabrina

1a. Secretary

2. In the Mood for Love

3. The Palm Beach Story

4. Roman Holiday

5. The Umbrellas of Cherbourg

Our Favorite Fashion-y Film Contest: Secretary

We totally forgot our fashion film contest! Argh. The winner will receive: the movie, plus a special addition, which we will unveil at the end of the week.

Today's nominee, courtesy of uahmed (we went with the first comment nomination):

I have to say Secretary with Maggie Gyllenhaal. Her blouses and skirts were crazy sexy in a conservative way (she made it possible).

Totally true. This is actually our sort of favorite at the moment.

Here is a clip from the opening. Man, this movie is bizarre, but it is also incredibly awesome.

The Holly Golightly Sleep Mask

So we have coveted this sleep mask since the first time we saw Breakfast at Tiffany's, but we could never find precisely the right thing. Then we saw these on Fred Flare, aptly labeled the Holly Golightly sleep mask. But we were all, "What's up with the fake eyelashes and gold trim?"

So then we were wondering how PhotoShopped the Audrey picture was, and checked our earlier commentary (with the photo above). We were wrong, obvs. This reminds us of that part in American Pastoral where the Swede finds out his wife always hated the house they live in ... only a bit less melodramatic. In any case: We might still need to get out the glue gun, as those lashes look a bit thick to us. No?

Welcoming the Neighborhood: Ask Fashion Kitty Day

So because we love our fellow fashion blog community, and because we love few things more than a fair swap, we're dedicating some posts to our neighbors who were so nice to do the same thing for us. Today, we talked to our blogosphere buddy Fashion Kitty of Ask Fashion Kitty about her favorite moment in fashionable film. There is more alliteration in that sentence than we would have ever thought possible. Anyway:

Bunnyshop: Do you have an all-time favorite fashion moment from a film?

Fashion Kitty: Sure, I could take the easy and more fashionable way out and choose Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's rocking a little black dress. Or I could even go with Anne Hathaway’s transformation in the Devil Wears Prada (those Chanel boots were amazing.) But my favorite fashion moment in a movie has to go to Mean Girls. The wardrobe in Mean Girls wasn't anything to write home about, but when Karen said "We wear pink on Wednesdays" and Cady didn't have anything pink and was forced to borrow Damien's pink polo shirt ... that was just priceless. And for anyone who has watched Mean Girls 10,000 times will appreciate this quote: "I WANT MY PINK SHIRT BACK! I WANT MY PINK SHIRT BACK!"

Ha! We totally laughed out loud when we read this. Some recommended AFK reading:

Dear Fashion Kitty: Homecoming Woes, because Homecoming can be stressful;

Eyebrow Waxing at Benefit, because more than these freaks us out we want to try it;

Discussion of an instructional smokey-eye video, because more than even, say, French or physics, we need to learn how to do this.

Catherine Deneuve In Belle De Jour

We went and saw Belle de Jour last night at the National Film Theatre, which was so exciting because we have always considered ourselves a little too downmarket for movie theaters with assigned seating. What we noticed first was the way Catherine Deneuve always went to bed (and, as you might suspect, she goes to bed a lot) wearing full make-up. (See above.)

Also, the brothel madame played by Genevieve Page had (a) an amazing green dress, and (b) amazing flip-up eyeliner that we totally covet.

Bourjois liquid eyeliner, $15

And also: We have thought this coat was ugly from the first time we spied its hideousness, but CD wears a coat much like it (designed by Yves Saint Laurent) and this is super similar. It is makes us think this might not be terrible. Shiny nightmare that it is. McQ PVC coat, was $688, now $419

Another Word About the DWP Jewelry

We are convinced the jewelry Anne Hathaway's wearing below is Me & Ro, though we have no proof of it here. This is sort of it, isn't it? M&R "Tibetan Amulet with Indian Diamonds in 18 Karat Gold," $1,820. Can't afford that one, either.

And then this: First: Me & Ro "Indian Diamond Bombay Moon & Star Necklace in 18kt Gold," $1,755. Tss.